Intro

I'm sitting at my desk, at home, getting this out of the way before I go out to a local mahjong den to listen 70s and 80s Filipino music, but no, to actually go and eat a Starbread slider, because it looks and sounds amazing and this space has a rolling menu and guest chefs and djs so I get to push myself to meet people. There, that's the pretense for what I'm telling myself to motivate myself to go out so that the trip to my friend's empty apartment and water her plants doesn't become a total waste. BUT, to continue on the title, when I go out, I have hope that I'll make a connection to someone that makes me smile. It's become easier over time to talk to strangers and introduce myself by asking about their tattoo, their outfit, or the book they have tucked away because the cover looks interesting. On Reddit, I could just say, "Hi, I'm u/InJulyALemonade because we could meet cooly under a leafy glade, where I can wish you health, and. more than wealth, I wish you love." Either way, I hope to trade my time with people out there, and you, the reader, to leverage my great listening skills for your worries and concerns because if you confess to that murder to a total stranger, who am I going to tell? You'll probably find some kind of catharsis and be on your way with your next stop being what you're looking for. I'd probably write about it in a journal because sometimes writing is all I've got and I want to collect stories to share with someone in the future.

Details

Pedantic semantics and a nestled salutations aside, I'm a 30, 6'0 Southeast Asian with a part-time penchant for listening to poetry and comedy some nights, postcards, craft fairs, writing short stories, reading longer ones, adding food adventures to a map, caring for a foster failed cat and permanent plants. I've got a full-time commitment to law and technology because I couldn't just pick one.

Vibe Check

Travel by train is best passed with video essays, writing, an audiobook or podcast, and just enjoying the views that never get old. Mint ice cream? Cold toothpaste. Pearls in milk tea? I ordered a drink, not a meal! Philosophy? I'd rather a good story for five years from now than another day of nothing special. I'm the kind of person who goes to a party expressly looking for people who do not want to be there and say, "Let's do something else." And we end up finding cornhole at midnight until the cops come because we're trespassing, or we look for the only open donut shop or milkshake-ery within 10 miles, while getting to know one another. Oh! And probably arguing where the best churros are at, then having to get all of them to compare.

Who I'm Looking For

You, perhaps. If you're good at being a friend, OR a companion, OR a partner, whatever the term is. Or any mix of them. I'm looking for a person to chat with about the mundane things in the day, because everything can be a fun story, on the couch over a meal we've cooked, over the phone while doing laundry, or in the morning in response to a notification. I'm looking for someone to try new things with and literally plan every week or two to do those things on a weekend because there's no way we've tried everything in the Bay Area and beyond. Then, we add dessert to the mix or snacks and watch a movie before parting for the late-late evening.

I'm looking for someone who knows how to value any or all of that because they lived enough of a life where they didn't.

So, how do we do any this? Name something you want. Let's go and find it. We could also meet at a bar (I don't drink much) or a restaurant you've wanted to try, and just talk. Or, we can go for a Target or HMart run and judge one another for whatever the snack and brand choices are. Point is, let's just go.